Owning your own home

Ha! You have seen my front room then. Two buggies, three adult bikes, two kids bikes, two scooters, and usually piles of coats and shoes.

My perception of new builds is tiny rooms, low ceilings, corners cut, exorbitant service charges and killer ground rent.

It's the lack of character and period features like asbestos that put me off.

I don’t like the lack of windows in bathrooms in new builds. I would have been to live with it with a strong fan, but for my partner the idea of having a bathroom without window was a no-no. Also bedrooms seemed very small in most of the developments we looked at last year. In one the built in wardrobe wouldn’t open fully because there wasn’t enough distance to the bed.

My perception of new builds is tiny rooms, low ceilings, corners cut, exorbitant service charges and killer ground rent.

Yeah...these weren’t bad. 5 bed house with garage for < £1M though...it was appealing

I like chingford, we’re just off Drysdale on a road leading to the tree line. People are weird but nice, pubs are just OK, nothing funky just burger and a pint with a side of chicken.

Ha! As said - I live in a modern(ish) development. It has no period features, and while it has character I don't think anyone would describe it as charming.

More important for me is that there is an RTM company run by residents and we appoint our own managing agents. Plus the ground rent is pepper corn and we have a 900 plus year lease. It is weirdly cult like though - people never leave, and 3 bed plus apartments are almost always bought by existing residents.

I forgot you would be a neighbour. Out.

hey I made that joke already!!

Key thing for my next place (if I ever move) is it being freehold and preferably detached, in it's own grounds, ideally with a double garage and a workshop. And within an hours 5am drive to Heathrow.

Extra points for being able to have a proper walk around the grounds.

With or without a moat?

Oh definitely with if at all possible.

I suspect Chingford is probably OK if you are white Caucasian

And the rest! This is actually looking fairly clear for a change...

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Think this map is a quite flawed.... Ascot to heathrow is <30 min. I live in Guildford and that is ~30-40 mins to heathrow and you can't even see it on the map!

Yeah complete nonsense, it changed to 30 minutes. This is an hour apparently.

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Na that's too small too I reckon. M4 Junction 15-Heathrow can be done in an hour with no/5am traffic (although this was pre-that annoying 50MPH section)

I'd like to withdraw from the how-far-is-an-hour-from-heathrow game.

Our street is very multicultural, it’s almost this century.

way more realistic. genuinely loads of nice places to live within that (because it's a massive area)

North Chingford just sneaking in on the top right. Cmon Dammit and t-v, easy access to Epping forest and a decent chippy.

Ha sorry! That wasn't an attack on you matey :)

Our street is very multicultural

which image do you relate to? In relation to your street

or

This has nailed it

Scampi